The chief executive of Acevo has said government should meet with charity leaders to improve sector leadership and governance, and has called for charitable foundations to fund a programme to improve the sector’s image.
Sir Stephen Bubb used his speech to his charity’s AGM yesterday to say the sector needs a more constructive relationship with government and a better image in the media, following “prolonged and carping criticism of the sector” which has “begun to mutilate the face of charity”.
Bubb said that if government believes the sector is not delivering what is needed, it should meet with sector leaders to discuss how civil society leadership and governance can be strengthened. And he said the sector itself needs to mount a much more robust defence of itself in the media.
He said after the meeting that NCVO and Acevo had begun the process of creating a campaign to improve the image of the sector, but that such a campaign would need much greater resources than the two bodies could muster. He called for other charities, particularly foundations, to support their efforts.
‘Accord with government’
“There are five separate national inquiries into the charity sector at the moment,” he said, speaking to Civil Society News after the event. “These are not taking a constructive view of charities but a destructive one.
“It’s time the sector was more robust in defending its role and reputation in this country. This sort of prolonged and carping criticism is becoming toxic. It’s damaging our ability to fundraise and deliver services.”
He called for a “new accord with government” and said that ministers concerned about the sector’s role must engage with it.
“We need to look at how we can positively address issues like capacity-building and infrastructure,” he said. “We need Rob Wilson, the minister for civil society and the Cabinet Office to lead us into a more efficient and constructive debate about the sector. We need him and other ministers to sit down with us to talk about positive messages and growing effective capacity.
“We don’t need them to pour millions into the sector, just talk about how they can be involved in positive messaging and supporting governance and leadership.”
‘Campaign to change image of the sector’
Bubb also emphasised the importance of an agreement between Acevo and NCVO to develop a campaign to promote a positive image of the sector in the media.
He said that since the campaign was announced earlier this month, he had met with Sir Stuart Etherington, chief executive of NCVO, and developed some initial suggestions about the scope and targets of the work.
“We’re currently talking about the sort of campaign we need and how we’ll fund it,” he said. “The resources needed are likely to be beyond those of NCVO and Acevo. Hopefully we will be able to approach donors and foundations for funding.
“The role of foundatiojns in supporting this kind of campaign is particularly crucial. They must play their part in promoting brand charity, rather than just funding programmes.”
He said he also hoped to tap into the expertise in the sector.
“Some of the best campaigns in the world are run by the UK charity sector,” he said. “I hope we can put some of that resource into promoting the idea of charity. Imagine if we can replicate the compelling work done to change how people think about mental illness. That campaign showed how we can change the public mind. Now let’s do that about the whole charity sector.”
Excellence Hub
Bubb also said Acevo is looking at developing a Charities Excellence Hub which will encourage the development of good leadership and governance in the sector.
“It’s still being scoped at the moment,” he said. “The idea is that it will provide whatever resources are most needed to develop those skills, whether that’s training or peer mentoring or digital services. We are conducting a feasibility study and will hopefully have more details at our conference.”
